Dèyelaprrîefit

:^:igiliïilïii|r#^r
Regional Population and Employment Mjustments to Rising Coal

Production, by Paul R. Myers, Economic Development Division,

Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture,

Rural Development Research Report No. 37.

ABSTRÂGT Annual U.S. coal production rose by nearly 17 percent in the

years following the oil crisis of 1973. This increase induced

slight gains in population in the Nation's 289 coal counties

but greater gains in emproyment-—both in coal mining and in

other industries. Goal counties in the West increased production and employment more than those in the Interior and East.

Increased coal mining caused employment to expand in secondary

industries (contract construction, transportation, finance),

but had little effect on agriculture (employment down) and manufacturing (employment up slightly).

Keywords: Coa! production, population and employment change,

regional growth.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance of

Anita R. Parker, Sharon A. Jones, and Brenda M. Heggie.

Washington, D.C. November 1983

11
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CONTENTS Page

Highlights iv

Introduction. • • • • • • • 1

Importance of Coal Mining ^

Changing Levels of Population 7

Changing Patterns of Employment 9

Regional Variations in Employment 11

Employment Changes for Primary Industries 12

Employment Changes for Secondary Industries 14

Recent Emplo5rment Developments, 1979-82 15

Conclusion .••••...• •....• 17

Appendix Tables 19

111
HIGHLIGHTS Increased U.S. coal production following the 1973 oil crisis

induced population and emplo3mient growth in coal counties, but

only when increases in coal production were massive. Coalproducing counties in the East, with a small increase in coal

production (1.3 percent) after the oil crisis, experienced less

of an increase in population than the Eastern States as a

whole. Coal-producing counties in the Interior, with a 7.4-

percent increase in coal production, experienced population

growth rates equal to the Interior States. Coal-producing

counties in the West, which nearly tripled their coal production, had a population growth rate seven times greater than the

national average for 1973-79.

Increased coal production boosted emplo3nnent growth in such

secondary industries as wholesale and retail trades, transportation, finance, insurance, and real estate. Employment growth

in the service industries appeared likewise to be induced only

when coal production increases were of major proportions, for

example, in the major coal-producing counties of the West.

Employment growth rates in the coal counties were several times

greater than population growth rates. That difference suggests

increased labor force participation rates by the local papulation. In the Eastern coal counties, for example, coal production rose little and most new jobs were filled by people already living there. As a result, inmigration of workers was

limited and employment growth was four times greater than population growth. In contrast, the rapid increase in coal production in the West created job opportunities far in excess of the

local labor supply. Many new jobs were filled by workers moving into the coal counties and employment growth was only twice

that of population growth in the Western coal counties.

Employment in agriculture and manufacturing declined or grew

minimally as coal production increased. In the case of declining manufacturing employment in the Eastern coal counties,

workers may have shifted from low-paying employment in maLnufacturing to traditional employment in mining. While agricultural

employment declined as coal production increased, employment in

the contract construction industry expanded, especially in the

major coal counties of the West.

IV
and

Employment Adjustments to

Rising Coal Production

Paul R. Myers "^

INTRODUCTION U.S. coal production rose by nearly 50 percent between 1969 and

1981, triggered by an increased demand for energy and the 1973

oil crisis and subsequent high oil prices (fig. 1). Demand for

coal exports rose even faster than domestic demand—nearly

doubling between 1969 (57.9 million tons) and 1981 (112.9 million tons). Some industry forecasts predict coal exports as

high as 215 million tons per year by the year 2000. U To satisfy such a surge in demand, the United States has an abundant

supply of coal reserves—778 billion tons—sufficient to last

for centuries, even if consumption reaches 2 billion tons per

year • _2/

With increased coal mining came increased employment in the

coal counties. This study describes how population and employment changed in the Nation's coal-producing counties (as of

1979, excluding Alaska) as the demand for coal accelerated.

Earlier research efforts were regional in scope or looked at

coal mining from a natural resource perspective rather than

from a demographic perspective. 3/ This study analyzes population and employment changes during 1969-79 to determine (1)

*The author is an economist with The Economic Development

Division, Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

¿/U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Mines, Minerals

Yearbook, 1970. U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Review,

Energy Fact Sheet, #25. The Washington Post^ Business section,

Feb. 8, 1982.

2/ Minerals Yearbook, op. cit. Projection assumes a recovery

rate of 50 percent for the Nation's total reserves of 1,556,549

million tons. Office of Technology Assessment, "Direct Use of

Coal," April 1979, Alan Cfane.

_S/ An example of regional research on the subject is A

Socioeconomic Profile of the Northern Great Plains Coal Region,

AER-400 (Myers, Hines, and Conopask, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture,

Economics, Statistics, and Cooperatives Service, March 1978).

An example of research slanted toward natural resources is Coal

Development in Rural America, RDRR-29 (McMartin, Whetzel, and

Myers, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Economic Research Service,

August 1981).
Figure 1

U.S. Coal Production, 1969-1981

Million tons

900 I750

600

450

300

I OU í«*f'^'*-í-" 5«<ï,i'>i<^î-'" -^' "-'-f:;i^\,>-.. ^j, ^^_

1969 1971

U.S. total

Eastern region

Interior region

Western region

1973 1975 1977 1979 1981

where economic expansion occurred in coal-producing counties

during 1973-79 and (2) which secondary industries experienced

the most growth as a result of the coal boom.

While this study concentrates on the economic consequences of

increased coal production during 1973-79, a decline in coal

production can obviously induce economic contraction in coal

counties. For example, coal mining employment declined steeply

from 1979-82 producing unemplo3mient rates well above the national unemployment rate for 1982.

For the analysis, the data were divided along the following

lines.

o The time period studied was from 1969-79, divided into two

periods, 1969-73 and 1973-79, with 1973 being the dividing

line because that was the year of the U.S. oil crisis.

o The 289 U.S. coal-producing counties were grouped in

several different ways:

—By region (Eastern, Interior, and Western, see fig. 2).

—By metro and nonmetro classification, to separate growth

due to coal mining from the general growth of nonmetro

areas in the seventies.

—By major or minor coal producer, with 5 million tons per

year being the dividing line (table 1).
If economic expansion was greater in 1973-79 than in 1969-73,

or in major coal-producing counties than in minor counties,

then that was accepted as due to increased coal mining activity.

Before the oil crisis, annual average coal production was 580.6

million tons per year (1969-73); after the oil crisis, annual

average coal production was 677.5 million tons per year (1973

-79), an increase of 16.7 percent, reflecting the Nation's

response to threatened oil supplies. This increase was not

evenly distributed among the coal regions. While production in

Figure 2

Coal Producing Counties, 1979

Western Interior Eastern

Goat producing counties

Table 1~U.S. coal-producing counties, 1979 1/

Type of coal county Total East Interior West

Number of counties

Total coal counties 289 161

Minor coal counties 234 129

Major coal counties 55 32

85 43

74 31

11 12

1/ See appendix table 11 for list of coal-producing counties<
the Eastern coal region changed tninimally between the two periods (1.3 percent), production in the Interior coal region increased by 7.4 percent, and the W^ coal region experienced

a dramatic increase of 188,3 percent.

Why did coal production increase so much in the Western coal

counties? There are several, reasons. Western coal is sübhltiiminous and possesses a low sulphur content, making it less

polluting than eastern coal when it is burned and consequently

more compliant witjitlie standardes of the Cle Air Act. Western coal deposits are found in much thicker seams, with less

overhurden, than eastern coal. These features make western

coal more amenable to surface mining than coal in the other two

regions. Western coal mining is more capital intensive with

higher levels of worker productivity than mining in the

Interior and Eastern regions. This has given the Western region an advantage in responding to increased energy demand,

especially since 1973. In 1979, the Western region produced

89^5 percent of its coal through surface mining techniques compared with only 42.7 percent of coal in the East.

Only 55 of the 289 coal-^produclng counties accounted for 67. 3

percent of total Ü>S. coal production in 1979. These 55

counties, which produced over 5 million l:öns per year each In

1979, exemplify the effects of intensive coal production; and for

this reason axe called marjor coal-producing counties (table 2).

IMPORTANGE OF

GOAL MINING

The U.S. coal mining Industry employed 254,059 people in 1979

(table 3), representlngOéS percent of the total wage and

salary employment In the United States and 0.9 percent in the

U.S.nonmetro areas. Aljthoijgh coal mining is not a large employer in the United States, It is an Inducer of secondary

Table 2—-Coal production^ 1979

Gounty, State Production

234 minor coal counties

55 major coal counties

Top 20 major counties

Top 10 major counties

Top 5 major counties

Gâmpbell, Wyo.

PikeV Ky.

Big Horn, Mont.

Buchanan, Va,

Rosebud, Mont.

Million tons

254..6

523.,3

283.,6

174.,7

112.,4

41..0

23..2

18..1

15.,8

14.,2

Perceat of

total

32.7

67.3

36.5

22.4

14.4

5.3

3.0

2.3

2.0

1.8

Source : U.S. Department of Energy, Bureau of Mines, Minerals Yearbook,

"Goal—Bituminous and Lignite,"1979.
Table 3—Coal mining employment and earnings in 289 U.S. coal counties

\ Total coal mining Compound annual Coal mining employment • Coal mining earnings as

Area employment employment change as a percent

TWSE 1/

of a percent oi

income

e total

2/

: 1969 ; 1973 ; 1979 1969-:

79 :

1969-

73

: 1973- .

: 79 1969 : 1973 ; 1979 1969 ; 1973 : 1979

-Number— ——— -Percent——- —^ ^^

Total coal counties : 132,686 156,850 254,059 6.7 4.3 8.4 2.4 2.7 3.8 3.4 4.2 6.6

Metro : 32,815 38,737 55,239 5.3 4.2 6.1 .9 1.1 1.3 1.3 1.6 2.3

Nonmetro • 99,871 118,113 198,820 7.1 4.3 9.1 5.1 5.5 7.9 7.6 8.9 14.2

Eastern region 111,205 127,868 195,828 5.8 3.6 7.4 3.0 3.3 4.6 4.1 5.1 7:8 Minor 35,636 35,857 62,136 5.7 .2 9.6 1.2 1.2 1.9 1.6 1.8 3.4 Major 75,569 92,011 133,692 5.9 5.0 6.4 9.0 10.1 12.7 12.9 15.6 20.6

Interior region : 18,170 23,417 39,405 8.0 6.5 9.1 1.7 2.1 3.0 3.0 3.7 5.7 Minor : 9,910 12,732 21,336 8.0 6.5 9.0 1.0 1.2 1.7 1.7 2.1 3.3

Major : 8,260 10,685 18,069 8.1 6.6 9.2 11.2 12.8 17.4 19.3 23.4 29\6

Western region : 3,311 5,565 18,826 19.0 13.9 22.5 .4 .7 1.8 .6 1.1 1.5 Minor : 2,216 2,912 8,129 13.9 7.1 18.7 .3 .4 .9 .4 .6 3.1

Major : 1.095 2,653 10,697 25.6 24.8 26.2 1.6 3.1 7.2 2.3 4.9 13.3

Type of county: :

Minor : 47,762 51,501 91,601 6.7 1.9 10.1 1.1 1.1 1.7 1.4 1.7 2.9 Major : 84,924 105,349 162,458 6.7 5.6 7.5 8.7 9.7 12.4 12.6 15.3 21.0

1/ TWSE - Total wage and salary emplpyment in 289 U.S. coal counties; coal mining employment as a percent of total wage

and salary employment for the united States in 1979 was 0.3 percent; for U.S. metro areas, 0.07 percent; and for U.S. nonmetro, 0.9 percent.

2/ Total income equals earnings from total wage and salary employment, plus proprietor's income plus all other income from

labor.

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information System, 1969 1973 and

1979. ^ ^ ^-
employment (the railroad industry, for example) and is economically important at the national level as a basic industry with

a growing export market.

Coal mining in 1979 accounted for just 3.8 percent of total

wage and salary employment in the Nation's 289 coal counties,

but it was important in other ways, hj The coal mining share

of employment was 7.9 percent in nonmetro coal counties, and in

dollar terms coal mining earnings represented 14.2 percent of

total income in the nonmetro coal counties in 1979, almost

twice the 7.6 percent of 1969.

Coal mining employment increased by 6.7 percent per year between 1969 and 1979 (7.1 percent in nonmetro coal counties),

with a surge in coal mining employment after the oil crisis.

As a direct source of emplo)^ent and income, the coal industry

is far more important to the 234 nonmetro coal counties than to

the 55 metro coal counties.

Coal mining has become an increasingly important employer in

the major coal-producing counties. Minor coal counties, on

the other hand, were less dependent on coal mining for employment and earnings in 1979. However, since 1973, the minor coal

counties have experienced a 10.1-percent annual increase in

coal mining employment. If national energy trends persist,

this may lead to further increases in coal production and more

dependence on coal mining for these minor coal counties. In

1979, 12.4 percent of employment in major coal counties was in

the coal industry, while 21 percent of total income came from

the coal mines. The divergence between coal mining's share of

total employment and share of total income was probably due to

two factors, (1) coal mining employment pays higher wages than

most other jobs, and (2) coal mining jobs added in 1973-79 may

have been filled by workers who had been only marginally employed previously. _5/

The Eastern coal counties have historically been closely associated with coal mining. Many areas in the East depend on coal

production to such a degree that tradition and lifestyles have

developed around coal mining. Most of the Nation's coal mining

employment, 77.1 percent, was in the Eastern coal region in

1979. Coal mining in the Eastern coal region increased by 5.8

percent annually since 1969, with annual employment surging 7.4

percent following the oil crisis. By 1979, 4.6 percent of the

region's employment was in coal mining, which generated 7.8

percent of the Eastern coal region's total income. In major

Eastern coal counties, 12.7 percent of emplo3rment was in coal

mining, which produced more than 20 percent of total income

compared with 6.6 percent for all U.S. coaj. counties. Although

the major Eastern coal counties had the smallest relative

change in coal production between 1973 and 1979, they

4^/ Total wage and salary employment henceforth will be referred to as employment.

5J Differences between shares of income and employment may be

due also to differences in quality of BEA data for the two variables.

6
constituted the largest absolute gain in coal mining employment--41,681 new Jobs in the 32 counties.

While coal mining is a well established and important industry

in the East, its importance to the Interior and, especially,

the West arose only after the oil crisis. The Interior region

employed 39,405 i>eople in coal mining in 1979, compared with

18,826 in the West and 195,828 in the East. Goal mining represented only a small percentage of employment in the Interior

and West. The two most significant features of coal mining in

these regions are: (1) the rapid increase of employment in

coal mining since 1973, and (2) the relative importance of this

industry in the major coal counties, especially in the

Interior's 11 major counties where the industry accounted for

17.4 percent of total employment and generated 29.6 percent of

total income by 1979. Coal mining was second only to manufacturing in the Interior coal region, where manufacturing has

declined as an employer since 1969 (app. table 3). The coal

industry contributed heavily to the Interior's 11 major coal

counties in 1979 in dollar terms and employment, but less so in

the West's major coal counties.

Only 1.6 percent of employment in the major Western coal counties was in the coal mining industry in 1969. By 1979, after a

decade of annual increases of about 25 percent, coal mining

employment in major Western coal counties constituted 7.2 percent of total employment there and coal earnings accounted for

13.3 percent of total income in these counties. Using coal

mining employment data to gauge the importance of coal mining

to the West probably understates the total impact of the coal

mining Industry on the region. Since most coal is surface

mined in the West (89éS percent in 1979>, every additional

miner in the West not only produces more coal than an eastern

miner but also produces more secondary employment because

greater levels of income are generated by the western coal

miner.

CHANGING LEVELS OF The growth or decline of population in an area often depends

POPULATION on local emplojnnent opportunities. If the demand for labor

increases, the existing population base is pressured to supply

labor. The response is increased labor force participation

rates, inmigration of new labor, or both, inmigration, of

course. Increases population as well as emplo5nment.

U.S* coal counties experienced an overall population growth at

a smaller annual rate than did the Nation as a whole, 0.6 percent versus 0.9 percent for the decade (table 4), despite the

^ coal counties' smaller than average population base in 1969.

However, it does appear that the population did grow through

new job opportunities in coal mining, in areas where coal

production increased rapidly. The 55 major coal-producing

counties of 1979 grew twice as rapidly during the decade as the

234 minor coal counties, 1.0 percent per year compared with 0.5

percent. Since the average population bases were nearly the

same for the major and minor coal counties in 1969, the
Table 4—Population and population change for the United States

Area

U.S. total

Metro

Nonmetro

U.S. coal

Metro

Nonme t rp

Eastern U.S.

Eastern coal

Minpr

Major 2_/

Interior U^S.

Interior coal

Minor

Major

Western U.S.

Western coal

Minor

Major

Type of county:

Minor

Major

Counties

Number

3,141

631

2,510

289

55

234

1,172

161

129

32

1,525

85

74

11

444

43

31

12

234

55

Population

1969 1973 1979

—-^Thousands—

201,298 1/209,846 220,062

146,389 152,211 158,356

54,909 57,635 61,706

15,854 16,201 16,841

9,128 9,202 9,327

6,726 6,999 7,514

91,754 95,437 98,098

10,852 11,064 11,262

8,304 8,446 8,561

2,548 2,618 2,701

75,218 77i734 80,832

3,148 3,235 3,379

2,887 2,959 3,074

261 276 306

34,326 36,675 ^1,132

1,854 1,902 2,200

1,625 1,645 1,846

229 257 354

12,816 13,050 13,481

3,038 3,151 3,360

1969-

79

Compound annual change

1969-

73

1973-

79

—^——^-^-Percent-—^-

0.9

.8

1.2

.6

.2

1.1

.7

.4

.3

.6

.7

.7

.6

1.6

1.8

1.7

1.3

4.4

.5

1.0

1-0

1.0

1.2

.5

• 2

1.0

1.0

.5

.4

.7

.8

.7

.6

1.4

1.7

.6

.3

2.9

.5

.9

0.8

.7

1.1

.6

.2

1.2

.5

.3

.2

•5

.6

.7

.6

1 J

1,9

2.4

1.9

5,5

,5

1,1

Ave rage

population per

county (1969)

Number

64,087

231,995

21,876

54,858

165,964

28,744

78,288

67,404

64,372

79,625

49^323

37,035

39,014

23;727

77j311

43,116

52,419

19,083

54,769

55,236

\_l Numbers may not add to total due to rounding.

_2/ Major coal producing counties produced 5 million tons or more of coal in 1979.

^^"^^"Wn. U.S. Departiiient of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information System, 1969 1973

and 1979. ' ' ^ ' " ——-—-.—^———— ' • '' ,,, *
difference in population growth rates is most likely due to

differences in coal production activity. ¿/

Population in the major Eastern coal counties increased at the

same rate as in the East as a whole—0.5 percent from 1973-79.

Slow population growth in Eastern coal counties corresponded to

the small increase (1.3 percent) in total coal production in

the time period (app. table 1). However, demand for coal

miners increased and new labor was supplied by the region's

indigenous population through increased labor force participation rates. For more data about labor force participation

rates in nonmetro areas, as it generally might apply to this

study, see The Nonmetro Labor Force in the Seventies, RDRR-33

(Schaub, James D., U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic

Research Service, November 1981).

Employment as a percentage of total population in the Eastern

coal counties increased from 34.1 percent in 1969 to 38.1 percent in 1979. (These percentages are not labor force participation rates, but they do reflect a measure of the potential

supply of labor in a given region.) The East's 38.1 percent is

low compared with the Western coal counties' 48.9 percent and

suggests that surplus labor is still available to accommodate

future expansion in the Eastern coal counties.

While it seems that the Eastern coal counties drew upon their

established population for new labor during 1973-79, major

Goal-producing counties of the Interior and West, with sparsely

populated counties in 1973, were not able to draw upon their

indigenous populations. Since increased labor force participation could not supply the labor, new labor migrated into these

majoT coal counties, causing an annual population growth of 1*7

percent in the Interior's 11 major coal counties following the

oil crisis. The rate of population growth in major coal counties of the West following the oil crisis was an astonishing 5.5

percent per year. In 1969 the 12 major Western coal counties

had an average population of 19,083 people; by 1979, the average population had increased to 29,500.

CHANGING PATTERNS The Nation's 289 coal counties employed 6.7 million people

OF EMPLOYMENT in 1979, an increase of 2.2 million workers since 1969 (table

5)* Annual employment growth rates were the same for total

U.S. areas and total coal counties, as well as for the metro

and nonmetro sectors. Strong nonmetro growth occurred both in

the coal regions and in the Nation at large. However, the effect of increased demand for labor in coal counties is quite

discernible between the two periods. While U.S. nonmetro employment increased by 2.4 percent per year both before and

after the oil crisis, employment in U.S. coal counties increased

by 2.4 percent in 1969-73 and by 2.7 percent in 1973-79•

Also, for all coal counties, the level of coal production

(major coal versus minor coal counties) clearly demonostrates

y Little, if any, of the population growth rates' difference

should be attributed to metro/nonmetro status; 80 percent of

minor counties were nonmetro while 83.6 percent of majors were

nonmetro in 1979.
Table 5~Total wage and salary employment and change

Area

*—

sa

1969

Total wage and

tlary empldyment 1/ • '

1 Compound annual empl

change

oyment

: 1973 ; 1979 : 1969- :

: 79 :

1969- :

73 :

1973-

79

-—Thousands^'— ; —. __. ,—Percent—

U.S.total

Metro

' Nonmétfo

78,266

60,704

17,562

83,797

64,452

19;345

95,832

73,502

22^330

2.0

1.9

2.4

1.7

1.5

2.4

2.3

2.2

2.4

U.S. coal

Metro

Nonmetro

5,502

3,544

1,958

5,810

3^658

2,152

6,702

4,183

2,518

2.0

1.7

2.5

1.4

.8

2.4

2.4

2.3

2.7

Eastern U.S.

Eastern coal

Minor

Major

36,360

3,698

2,860

838

38,776

3,905

2,994

';-9ii'/.

42,385

4,292

3,237

1,055

1.5

■■■ •.1.5 •

1.2

2.3

1.6

1.4

1.1

.;„ 2.1 ; ':,: •

1.5

1.6

1.3

2.5

Interior U.S.

Interior coal

Minor

Major

28,484

1,060

986

30,244

1,138

1,054

:,/;';,;' 84; :;„;:

34,718

1,334

1,230

:;-v'',io4': ;,• •

2.0

2.3

2.2

'.. . ^; 3.5;,:': :;:;:: ■■.:

1.5

1.8

1.7

2.3

2.7

2.6

, 3:..7,.:''

Western U.S.

Western coal

Minor

Major

13,421

744

676

68

14,777

767

680

87

18,729

1,076

928

148

3.4

3.8

3;2

8.1

2.4

.7

.1

6.2

1.6

5.8

5.3

9.3

Type of county:

Minor coal

Major coal

4,522

980

4,735

1,081

5,395

1.307

1.8

2.9

1.1

2.5

2.2

3.2

_1_/ Includes hired farmworkers.

Source: US. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Informât!

System, 1969, 1973, and 1979. on
the strong labor demand exerted as a result of increased coal

production. Total employment in major coal counties rose by

2.9 percent per year (2.5 percent in 1969-73 and 3.2 percent in

1973-79) while employment in minor coal counties rose by 1.8

percent. Minor coal counties experienced slower employment

growth than the Nation as a whole during both time periods,

which suggests that coal production may be an effective emplo3nnent stimulus only when increases in coal production are

great.

Regional Variations

in Employment

Emplo3nñent growth during 1969-79 for the Eastern coal counties

was the same as for the eastern region, 1.5 percent per year.

However, in the Interior and West, employment growth in coal

counties exceeded that for the U.S. regions~2.3 percent compared with 2.0 percent in the Interior, and 3.8 percent compared

with 3.4 percent in the West. While major coal counties in the

East increased their employment by 2.3 percent annually, major

coal counties in the Interior and West increased their employment

by 3.5 percent and 8.1 percent, respectively (fig. 3).

Similar factors (level of coal production, labor force participation rates, employment/population ratio, degree of industrial

development at start of period, and size of the county) appear

to have eontrlbuted both to the different population growth

rates and also to the different employment growth rates for the

regions. The Eastern coal counties had a more developed industrial infrastructure In 1969 than did the Interior and Western

coal counties. Additional coal mining employment in the

Figure 3

Population and Emproyment: Compound Annual Change

by Region, 1973-79

Total U.S.

Total coal counties

Major coal counties Population

change

Employment

change

11
Eastern coal counties appears to have had less of a multiplier

effect in inducing secondary employment than in the Western

coal counties (tahle 6). 7/

Another important factor relating to the greater employment

growth in the Western coal countless may be their larger size

compared with the Eastern coal counties. The great distances

fostered the development of service centers around Western coal

mining areas because neighboring counties with service centers

were simply too distant* Thus, secondary employment growth was

generally more localized in coal counties of the West. Eastern

coal counties, no doubt, lost some of their new secondary employment to neighboring noncoal counties (spillover). Also,

since employment growth generally was two to three times greater than population growth in the time period, it is likely that

labor force 4>articipâtion rates iricreased sharply, perhap^s more

in the Western coal counties than in the Eastern or Interior

coal counties.

Employment Changes

for Primary

Industries

Basic employment industries such as agriculture, mining, and

manufacturing export goods from their regions, thereby generating income and stimulating growth in nonbasic industries.

Mining employment represented 4^ 8 percent of total employment

in 1979 in the Nation*s 289 coal counties, but represented 14.3

percent of total employment in the 55 major coal counties (app.

table 4). _8/ Increased coal mining activity appears to have

stimulated the expansion of secondary industries in major coal

counties during 1973-79. This is especially true for the

Western coal counties where coal production increased most

following the oil crisis (fig. 4).

On the other hand, agriculture as an employer declined in importance in coal counties, althoij^h rising by 2.1 percent overall in the United States> Agricultural ^^^ in U.S. coal

counties increased by only 0.3 percent in 1969-79 and represented just 1.1 percent of total employment in 1979 (app. table

2). Agricultural employaient in maj^^ coal counties in the

Interior and West actually declined, while increasing by 0.9

percent in major coal counties dLn the East. It is unlikely

that agriculture induced additional secondary employment in the

Nation' s coal counties^Yespecia:lly in the 55 major coal counties

following the oil crisis.

7/ Appendix table 3 indicates a more developed industrial

infrastructure in the Eastern coal counties as evidenced by the

larger shares of total employment in manufacturing for the East

than in the other regions in 196S. The multiplier effect refers to how increases in basic emplojnnent (agriculture, mining,

and manufacturing) generate additional employment in nonbasic

industries. For example, every basic sector job (mining, manufacturing, and agriculture) created 3.8 nonbasic jobs in major

Western coal counties in 1973, and increased total employment

by 4*8 jobs. The employment multiplier equals total wage and

salary employment divided by basic employment.

6/ Coal mining employment in 1979 amounted to 79.4 percent of

total mining employment.

12
Table 6—Employment multipliers for major

coal counties

Region 1973 1979

Total 3.2 3.3

East 3.2 3.3

Interior 2.6 2.5

West 4.8 4.0

Figure 4

AniTual Employment Change for Major Coal Gountles, 1973-79

Agriculture

Mining

Manufacturing

Contract

Construction

Trades

Transportation

Finance, insurance,

real estate

Total Services

Government

I

-5

Eastern region

Interior region

Western region

I

15

I

20

Manufacturing employment in the Nation's coal counties declined

by 0.7 percent during 1969-79 compared with a U.S. growth rate

of 0.4 percent (app. table 3). Yet, manufacturing employment

by region declined only in the Eastern coal counties ; in the

Interior and Western coal counties, manufacturing employment

rose. Manufacturing declined by 0.8 percent in the major coal

counties of the East from 1973-79, compared with growth rates

of 1.1 percent in the Interior and 1.9 percent in the West.

Since most of the manufacturing decline occurred in the maj or

Eastern coal counties during 1973-79 when coal production

levels increased, It appears that manufacturing change may be

Inversely related to mining employment change. One possible

13
Employment Changes

for Secondary

Industries

explanation might be that the two Industries in the East compete for the same lahor. Eastern workers may have left lowpaying jobs in manufacturing for more traditional jobs, paying

higher wages, in mining.

The contract construction industry is typically responsive

to changes in basic economic activity. It often reflects the

"boom and bust" developmental activity associated with quick

infusions of new manufacturing or mining and is often the harbinger of such activityVas in the case of the building of new

mining sites. Contract construction emplo3mient for all U.S.

counties, U.S. coal counties, and the Eastern and Interior regions ranged from 4.4 percent to 5.1 percent of total employment in 1979. However, contract construction employment constituted 12 percent of total emplo5^ent in the major coal counties of the West (app. table 5). This high share resulted from

an annual growth rate of 12 petcent during 1973-79 (fig. 4).

The massive increase in contract construction was due to two

factors : (1) the large demand for new mining sites, especially

in the West but also in the East and, (2) the need to build a

service-producing industrial infrastructure in the previously

underdeveloped Western coal counties.

Wholesale and retail trade was the second largest employer in

U.S. coal counties in 1979 at 20.6 percent, compared with manufacturing at 22.9 percent (app. table 6). Employment growth

rates in the trades industry during 1973-79 were higher in the

major coal counties in all three regions than the employment

growth rate for the IMited States. In the major coal counties

of the West, trade employment expanded by 7.7 percent annually

following the oil crisis compared with the U.S. growth rate of

just 3.3 percent.

The transportation industry (Including transportation, public

utilities, and communications) is closely related to the mining

industry because the coal must be transported from the mining

site to consumers, unlike the óíher secondary industries, new

transportation employment was not confined to one coal mining

area as other secondary industries were. Employaient gains for

the Burlington Northern or the Chessie System railroads, as a

result of increased coal mining, were not localized. Therefore, growth of the transportation industry, when related to

increased coal production, may be slightly understated when

U.S. coal counties are examined separately. Nevertheless, the

impact of increased coal mining on transportation employment

was evident following the oil crisis when major coal counties

expanded transportation employment by 2.6 percent per year compared with the U.S* rate of 1.6 percent (app. table 7). Transportation's annual employment growth was 2.6 percent in major

coal counties compared with 2.0 percent in minor coal counties

during 1973-79. In fact, the transportation industry in the

Western coal counties went from a period of decline and stagnation before the oil crisis to a 4.8-percent annual growth rate

following the oil crisis.

14
The finanGe, insurance, and real estate industries (FIRE) experienced a 3. 5-p^rcent annual employment growth in th^ coal

counties and a 3/l-percent annual growth r^te in employment

nationwide (app. table 8). The strength of the coal mining

stimulus to FIRE employment was evidenced by the difference in

growth rat^s between major and minor coal counties. The major

coal counties of the West in 1973-79 expanded FIRE employment

by 11.3 percent per year compared with the minor coal counties*

growth rate of 5.9 percent. This reflected the need for new

credit services to finance the development of service centers

in the West, as well as new housing.

The service industry grew at about the same annual rate in U.S.

coal counties as it did in the total United States during

1973-79, 4.0 percent compared with 3.9 percent (app. table 9).

However, major coal counties in the West experienced an annual

growth rate of 12.5 percent in service emplojnnent for the period, while the Eastern and Interior coal regions experienced

lower rates than the Nation as a whole. This regional difference in service employment growth reflects the sparse development of industrial infrastructure in the major coal counties in

the West in 1973. The Interior and Eastern coal counties benefited from service centers in nearby noncoal counties. In contrast, the coal counties in the West are large and sparsely

populated with great commuting distance between established

service centers, and therefore a greater demand for new local

service centers in the West materialized.

Government services during 1973-79 in U.S. coal counties expanded by 1.1 percent annually, about the samç as the U.S.

growth rate of 1.2 percent (app. table 10). The greatest

growth of employinent in government services occurred in 1969-

73~before the oil crisis—for U.S. coal counties and for the

Nation at large. In general, the smaller annual growth for

government employment later (1973-79) suggests that greater

coal production did not stimulate greater government employment. However, the major coal counties of the West continued

to expand government employment during 1973-79 at an annual

rate of 3.0 percent. This may have been from the stimulus of

massive coal production in the West.

Recent Employment Although the Nation's 289 coal-producing counties experienced

Developments, economic expansion during 1973-79, more recently (1979-82) the

1979-82 coal counties were caught in an economic contraction. A

national recession, an oil glut, and energy conservation reduced the aggregate demand for coal. After peaking in 1980 at

825.7 million tons, coal production in 1981 declined to 815.2

million tons (app. table 1). Although these levels of coal

production are historically high, a precipitous decline in coal

mining employment in 1982 suggests that coal production declined

again in 1982. Economic contraction in the NationVs coal

counties during 1979-82 resulted in declines in employment (job

loss) and subsequent high unemployment rates.

15
In contrast to the coal counties, employment increased in the

United States as a whole by 523,000 jobs during 1979-82

(table 7). This small increase was overshadowed by a larger

labor force, which induGed rising unemployment rates for the

Nation. U.S. unemployment rates rose from 5.8 percent in 1979

to 9.7 percent in 1982. The Na^^ coal counties however,

expôriencôd an actual decline in employment of 3.7 percent, or

a job loss of 266,000. A decline in coal mining employment of

20.6 percent, along with recession, made the economic contraction.in coal counties more severe than in the Nation in general. Unemployment rates in the coal counties, for example, rose

from 6.5 percent in 1979 to 12.4 percent in 1982.

Finally the Eastern coal counties underwent the most severe

economic contraction and most of tliat in 1982. Of the 266,000

jobs lost in all coal coiinties, 234,000 (88 percent) were from

the Eastern coal counties. By 1982, the unemployment rate had

risen to 13.5 percent in the Eastern coal counties, compared

with 10.4 percent in the Interior and 10 percent in the Western

coal counties/ Secondly, of 53,^000 jobs lost in coal mining

(from 1979-82), 51,000 of those were lost in 1982. Again, the

brunt of the economic contraction was felt by the Eastern coal

counties in 1982.

Table 7—Employment changes and unemployment rates

Area

United States

Coal counties,

total

Eastern coal

counties

Interior coal

counties

Western coal

counties

Coal mining

employment

1979 ' 1980

Employment ^' Employaient [Unemployment rates

/ ———' changes, * -———

1981 : 1982 : 1979-82 '1979 '1980 •1981 * 1982

- - - - - - - Thousands - - — - - - - - Percent - - - -

98,912 99,288 100,274 99,455 523 0.5 5.8 7.1 7.6 9.7

7,148 7,106 7,099 6,8B2 -266 -3.7 6.5 8.3 9.0 12.4

4,596 4,559 4,524 4^362

1,478 1,470 1,496 U450

1,075 1,077 1,079 1,070

-234 -5.1 7.0 9.0 9.8 13.5

-27-1.8 5.7 7.8 7.9 10.4

-5 -.5 5.4 6.4 7.5 10.0

256 262 254 203 -53-20.6 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.

N.A. = Not available.

Source: Unpublished data. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor.

16
CONCLUSION Regional population and employment changes in major coal-producing counties during 1973-79 corresponded closely with regional changes in coal production. Average annual coal production between 1969-73 and 1973-79 periods rose by 1.3 percent

in the East, 7.4 percent in the Interior, and 188 percent in

the West. Direct employment and income benefits of coal production were centered in the East in 1969, but these benefits

have increasingly shifted to the West.

Increased coal production contributed to population expansion

in the major coal counties of the Interior and West, but not in

the East. Although the population in the Eastern coal counties

grew following the oil crisis, the annual rate of growth was no

greater than that of the overall eastern U.S. rate of 0.5 percent. However, major coal-producing counties of the Interior

and the West experienced annual population growth rates during

1973-79 of 1.7 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively.

Employment growth followed a similar regional pattern, but

annual growth rates for employment were about twice the population growth rates in the major coal counties during 1973-79.

Total wage and salary employment rose by 2.5 percent annually

in the major coal counties of the East, 3.7 percent in the

Interior, and 9.3 percent in the West, compared with an employment growth rate of 2.3 percent for the entire United States.

Labor force participation rates increased because employment

growth was much greater than comparable population growth. For

example, most new jobs in the East probably were filled by

people already living in the coal counties, hence^ emplo^rment

growth rates were five times greater than population growth

rates. In contrast, rapid increases in coal production in the

West created job opportunities far in excess of the labor

supply. New jobs in major Western coal counties were filled by

new workers moving into the coal counties and, consequently,

employment growth was more in line with population growth.

While mining employment increased in all three coal regions

because of increased coal production during 1973-79, agricultural employment grew slowly in the major Eastern coal counties

<0.9 percent annually) and declined in the Interior and West

(1.1 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively). Manufacturing

employment grew in the major coal counties of the Interior and

the West following the oil crisis, but its growth rates were

much less than for mining employment. Compared with a U.S.

rate of 0.8 percent for manufacturing, the major coal counties

of the Interior expanded their manufacturing employment by 1.1

percent and the West by 1.9 percent. On the other hand, in the

major coal counties of the East, manufacturing employment/declined by 0.6 percent. It is unlikely that agriculture or manufacturing stimulated the growth in secondary jobs as much as

mining following the oil crisis.

Employment multipliers for the basic industries were highest in

the major Western coal counties at 4.0 compared with 3.3 and

2.5 in the Eastern and Interior coal counties. The high

17
multiplier in the West resulted, no doubt, from a greater need

to provide new serviees in the less developed major coal counties of the West. The high basic sector employment multiplier

and the high annual employment growth rate of 19.8 percent in

mining caused a rapid growth of secondary jobs in the West.

Major coal counties of the West underwent an annual emplo3mient

increase of 12.0 percent in contract construction during 1973-

79, compared with a 2.0"-percent growth rate for the United

States. Contract construction employment expanded rapidly in

the West to meet the demand for new mining sites, service centers, and residential housing for new mineworkers. For similar

reasons, the finance, insurance, and real estate industry in

the major coal counties of the West expanded by 11.3 percent

annually, while the overall U.S. rate was 3.1 percent. The

service industry expanded by 12.5 percent in the West compared

with an annual U.S. rate of 3.9 percent. This rapid growth

resulted from the greater demand for new^ localized service

development in the large major coal counties of the West, which

were less developed than the Interior and Eastern coal counties

in 1973. ServicjB industry employment in Eastern and Interior

major coal counties expanded by only 3.3 percent and 3.6 percent per year. Other secondary Industries such as the wholesale and retail trades industry, the transportation industry,

and the government services industry in the West also experienced

employment growth rates greater than the total U.S. rates.

The Nation's major coâl-prôducing counties benefited from the

accelerated energy demand following the 1973 oil crisis. Benefits were in the form of expanded job opportunities and increased income. Economic expansion corresponded to the magnitude of coal production increase and consequent growth in mining employment. The major coal counties of the West, where

coal production increase was massive, experienced the greatest

economic expansion.

18
Appendix table 1—^U.S. coal production, by region, 1969-81

; U.S . total ; East Interior West

Year Share Share • Share

:Produc- Surface Produc- of : Surface Produc- of Surface Produc - of : Surface

: tion : mined tion U.S.

tot ail

mined : tion : U.S.

total

mined t ion U.S.

total

: mined

:MiIlion Million Million Million

: tons Percent tons Percent— tons —-Percent—— tons -—Percent —

1969 : 560.5 38.1 394.9 70.5 27.8 139.9 25.0 62.4 25.7 4.6 63.8

1970 : 602.9 43.8 417.8 69.3 34.2 149.9 24.9 63.6 35.1 5.8 72.6

1971 : 552.2 50.0 373.5 67.6 41.4 136.4 24,7 64.8 42.3 7.7 78.5

1972 : 595.4 48.9 387.2 65.0 37.4 157.5 26.4 66.9 50.6 8.5 81.6

1973 : 591.7 49.4 374.8 63.3 37.8 156.4 26.4 64.1 60.5 10.2 83.5

1974 : 603.4 54.0 377.7 62.6 43.8 150.2 24.9 63.4 75.5 12.5 86.4

1975 : 648.4 54.7 396.5 61.1 43.5 162.1 25.0 64.5 89.8 13.8 86.7

1976 : 678.7 56.5 406.2 59.8 44.2 162.0 23.9 65.6 110.6 16.3 88.5

1977 691.3 61.5 393,8 60.0 49.6 163,8 , 23.7 67.3 133.8 19.3 89.3

1978 665.1 63.6 370.0 55.6 50.2 146.2 22.0 70.3 149.0 22,4 89.9

1979 777.9 59.3 425.3 54.7 42.7 170.0 21.8 68.8 182.3 23.5 89.5

1980 825.7 60.1 438.6 53.1 42.3 176.6 21.4 68.8 209.9 25.4 90.1

1981 815.2 61.8 425.2 52.2 43.2 166.1 20.4 71.5 223.9 27.5 90.0

Annual average : :

1969-73 : 580.6 389.7 148.0 42.9

1974-79 : 677.5 394.9 159.0 123.6

Change, 1969-79 : 16.7 1.3

Percent7.4 188.3

Source: U.S. Department of Energy and the Interior, Bureau of Mines, Minerals Yearbooks, "Coal~Bituminous and

Lignite," 1969-1981.
Appendix table 2—Agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industry: Employment change, and share of

total wage and salary employment

o

Area and Employment 1/ Compound

employment

annual

change

• Share

and sal

of total wage

ary employment

county type

; 1969 \ 1973 ; 1979 1969-

79

: 1969-

: 73

: 1973-

: 79 1969 : 1973 : 1979

-Thousands- n^ —^ ^

xreiceiiL

U.S. total

Metro

Nonmetro .- --"'

: 1,570

: 625

: 945

1,602

665

937

1,815

794

1,021

1.5

2.4

.8

0.5

1.6

-.2

2.1

3.0

1.4

2.0

1.0

5.4

1.9

1.0

4.8

1.9

1.1

4.6

U.S. coal, total

Metro

Nonmetro

: 71

: 22

: 50

71

22

49

74

24

49

.3

1.1

N.C.

N.C.

.3

-.2

.5

1.6

N.C.

1.3

.6

2.5

1.2

.6

2.3

1.1

.6

2.0

Eastern U.S.

Eastern coal

Minor

Major

584

35

: 30

5

579

36

30

6

632

35

29

6

.8

.1

-.3

2.3

.2

.7

N.C.

4.5

1.5

.1

.3

.9

1.6

.9

1.0

.6

1.5

.9

1.0

.7

1.5

.8

.9

.6

Interior U.S.

Interior coal

Minor

Major

550

22

20

2

556

23

21

2

625

25

22

2

1.3

.9

1.0

-.4

.3

.4

.3

.6

2.0

1.2

1.4

-1.1

1.9

2.1

2.1

2.9

1.8

2.0

2.0

2.6

1.8

1.8

1.8

2.0

Western U.S.

Western coal

Minor

Major :

436

14

11

3

467

13

10

3

558

14

12

3

2.5

N.C.

N.C.

-1.6

1.7

-2.4

-2.2

-3.4

3.0

1.6

2.1

-.4

3.2

1.9

1.6

4.6

3.2

1.7

1.5

3.1

3.0

1.3

1.2

1.8

Type of county: :

Minor :

Major :

61

10

60

11

63

11

.2

.7

-.3

1.5

.6

.2

1.4

1.0

1.3

1.0

1.2

.8

IJ Includes hired farmworkers, but excludes farmowners.

N.C. = No change or change is less than O.OD percent.

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information

System, 1969, 1973, and 1979.
Appendix table 3—^Manufacturing industry: Employment change, and share of total wage and salary

employment

Area and Employment Compound annual

: employment change

: Share of total

and salary empl

wage

ojrment

county type

; 1969 ; 1973 ; 1979 • 1969-

79

: 1969-

: 73

: 1973-

: 79 1969 ; 1973 : 1979

U.S. total : 20,270

j-iiuuaciLiuo

20,090 21,076 0.4 -0.2

rtjiceuL

.8 25.9' 24.0 22.0

Metro : 15,610 15,020 15,668 N.C. -1.0 .7 25.7 23.3 21.3

Nonmetro 4,660 5,070 5,408 1.5 2.1 1.1 26.5 26.2 24.2

U.S. coal, total 1,567 1,524 1,535 -.2 -.7 .1 28.5 26.2 22.9

Metro 1,066 1,000 1,013 -.5 -1.6 .2 30.1 27.3 24.2

Nonmetro 500 524 522 .4 1.2 N.C. 25.6 24.4 20.8

Eastern U.S. 9,878 9,655 9,710 -.2 -.6 N.C. 27.2 24.9 22.9

Eastern coal : 1,172 1,142 1,094 -.7 -.6 -.7 31.7 29.3 25.5

Minor 981 958 918 -.7 -.6 -.7 34.3 32.0 28.4

Major 191 184 175 -.8 -.9 -.8 22.8 20.2 16.6

Interior U.S. 7,868 7,881 8,214 .4 N.C. .7 27.6 26.1 23.7

Interior coal 249 260 278 1.1 1.1 1.1 23.5 22.9 20.8

Minor 234 242 259 1.0 .9 1.1 23.7 23.0 21.1

Major : 15 18 19 2.6 5.0 1.1 19.8 21.3 18.2

Western U.S. 2,525 2,554 3,152 2.2 .3 3.6 18.8 17.3 16.8

Western coal : 146 122 163 1.1 -4.4 5.0 19.6 15.9 15.2

Minor : 141 117 158 1.1 -4.6 5.1 20.8 17.2 17.0

Major : 5 5 6 1.4 .6 1.9 7.3 5.9 3.9

Type of county: :

Minor : 1,356 1,318 1,335 -.2 -.7 .2 30.0 27.8 24.7

Major : 210 207 200 -.5 -.4 -.6 21.5 19.1 15.3

N.C. = No change or change is less than 0.05 percent,

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information System,

1969, 1973, and 1979.
Appendix table 4—Total mining industry: Employment change and share of total wage and salary

employment

Employment Compound annual : Share of total wage

Area and emplo5raient change : and sal.ary empl oyment

county type

: 1969 : 1973 : 1979

1969- :

79 :

1969-

73

: 1973- :

: 79 1969 ; 1973 ; 1979

Thousands- nreruKiiL

U.S. total • 623 636 956 4.4 0.5 7.0 0.8 0.8 1.0

Metro 276 280 415 4.2 .4 6.8 .4 .4 .6

Nonmetro : 347 356 541 4.5 .6 7,2 2.0 1.8 2.4

U.S. coal, total 173 195 320 6.4 3.0 8.6 3.1 3.4 4.8

Metro 52 56 80 4.3 1.7 6.0 1.5 1.5 1.9

Nonmetro 121 139 241 7.2 3.6 9.6 6.2 6.5 9.6

Eastern U.S. 183 201 276 4.2 2.4 5.4 .5 .5 .7

Eastern coal 123 140 213 5.7 3.3 7.3 3.3 3.6 5.0

Minor 44 44 74 5.4 .4 8.9 1.5 1.5 2.3

Majpr 79 96 139 5.8 4.8 6.5 9.5 10.5 13.2

Interior U.S. : 312 305 483 4.5 -.6 8.0 1.2 1.0 1.4

Interior coal ; 37 40 63 5.5 2.0 8.0 3.5 3.5 4.8

Minor 28 29 44 4.7 .8 7.4 2.8 2.7 3.6

Major 9 12 20 7.8 5.6 9.3 12.5 13.8 18.9

Western U.S. : 128 130 197 4.4 .4 7.5 1.0 .9 1.1

Western coal : 13 15 44 12.7 3.4 19.4 1.8 2.0 4.1

Minor : 6 6 16 11.0 .1 18.9 .8 .8 1.7

Major : 8 10 28 13.9 5.6 19.8 11.4 11.1 19.2

Type of county: ;

Minor : 77 78 133 5.7 ,5 9.3 1.7 1.7 2.5

Major : 96 117 187 6.9 4.9 8.2 9.8 10.8 14.3

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information

System, 1969, 1973, and 1979.
Appendix table 5—Contract construction industry: Employment change and share of total wage and

salary employment

Area and

Employment Compound annual

employment change

Share of total

and salary empl(

wage

Djnnent

county type ' 1969 : 1973 : 1979

1969-

79

: 1969-

: 73

: 1973-

: 79

1969 ; 1973 ; 1979

mi j Tj^„^^^*.

1I1UU£>C1L1U£> reí. uciicU.S* total : 3,618 4,041 4,545 2.3 2.8 2.0 4.6 4.8 4.6

Metro : 2,873 3,173 3,466 1.9 2.5 1.5 4.7 4.9 4.7

Nonmetro : 745 868 1,079 3.8 3.9 3.7 4.2 4.5 4.8

U.S. coal, total : 259 270 335 2.6 1.0 3.7 4.7 4.6 5.0

Metro 176 173 213 1.9 -.4 3.5 5.0 4.7 5.1

Nonmetro 83 97 122 3.9 3.8 4.0 4.3 4.5 4.8

Eastern U.S. 1,679 1,982 1,864 1.1 4.2 -1.0 4.6 5.1 4.4

Eastern coal : 169 181 198 1.6 1.6 1.6 4.6 4.6 4.6

Minor 129 138 146 1.3 1.7 1.0 4.5 4.6 4.5

Major : 41 43 52 2.4 1.5 3.0 4.9 4.7 4.9

Interior U.S. : 1,357 1,354 1,702 2.3 -.1 3.9 4.8 4.5 4.9

Interior coal : 52 52 644 2.2 .1 3.6 4.9 4.6 4.8

Minor 47 47 59 2.3 .1 3.8 4.8 4.5 4.8

Major 5 5 5 .9 -.2 1.7 6.5 5.7 5.0

Western U.S. : 582 706 980 5.3 4.9 5.6 4.3 4.8 5.2

Western coal : 38 37 72 6.8 -.7 12.0 5.1 4.8 6.7

Minor : 33 28 55 5.0 -4.7 12,0 4.9 4.1 5.9

Major 4 9 18 15.7 21.5 12.0 6.1 10.4 12.0

Type of county:

Minor : 209 213 260 2.2 .4 3.4 4.6 4.5 4.8

Major 50 57 75 4.2 3.5 4.6 5.1 5.3 5.7

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information System,

1969, 1973, and 1979.
Appendix table 6—Wholesale and retail trades Industry: Employment change and share of total wage

and salary employment

Area and

county type

Employment : Compound annual

employment change

Share of total wage

and salary employment

: 1969 ; 1973 ; 1979 1969- :

79 :

1969-

73

- : 1973-

: 79 1969 ; 1973 ; 1979

U.S. total : 14,938 16,743 20,313 3.1 2.9

rercent

3.3 19.1 20.0 21.2

Metro : 12,027 13,383 16,052 2.9 2.7 3.1 19.8 20.8 21.8

Nonmetro : 2,911 3,360 4,261 3.9 3.7 4.0 16.6 17.4 19.1

U.S. coal, total : 1,023 1,121 1,382 3.1 2.3 3.6 18.6 19.3 20.6

Metro 696 750 914 2.7 1.9 3.3 19.6 20.5 21.8

Nonmetro : 327 370 469 3.7 3.2 4.0 16.7 17.2 18.6

Eastern U.S. 6,610 7,434 8,594 2.7 3.0 2.4 18.2 19.2 20.3

K) Eastern coal 660 732 856 2.6 2.6 2.6 17.9 18.7 19.9

4>. Minor 509 561 642 2.4 2.5 2.3 17.8 19.6 19.8

Major 152 171 214 3.5 3.0 3.8 18.2 18.7 20.3

Interior U.S. : 5,720 6,282 7,660 3.0 2.4 3.4 20.1 20.8 22.1

Interior coal : 207 224 282 3.1 2.0 3.9 19.5 19.7 21.1

Minpr : 195 211 266 3.1 2.0 3.9 19.8 20.0 21.6

Major : 12 13 16 3.1 2.2 3.8 15.9 15.3 15.3

Western U.S. : 2,605 3,027 4,059 4.5 3.8 5.0 19.4 20.5 21.7

Western coal : 156 165 245 4.7 1.5 6.8 20.9 21.5 22.8

Minor 143 149 220 4.4 .9 6.7 21.2 21.9 23.7

Major 12 16 25 7.5 7.2 7.7 18.0 18.7 17.1

Type of county: :

Minor : 847 921 1,128 2.9 2.1 3.4 18.7 19.5 20.9

Major : 176 200 255 3.8 3.3 4.1 17.9 18.5 19.5

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis. Regional Economic Information System,

1969, 1973, and 1979,
Appendix table 7—Transportation industry: Employment change and share of total wage and salary

employment

Area and

county type

Employment [ Compound annual

employment change

Share

and sal

of total wage

ary emplojraient

1969 : 1973 : 1979 : 1969-

: 79

: 1969-

: 73

: 1973-

: 79 1969 : 1973 [ 1979

—Thousands T>-.- ret ueiiL

U.S. total 4,455 4,660 5,134 1.4 1.1 1.6 5.7 5.6 5.4

Metro 3,661 3,812 4,132 1.2 1.0 1.4 6.0 . 5.9 5.6

Nonmetro 794 848 1,002 2.3 1.6 2.8 4.5 4.4 4.5

U.S. coal, total 348 356 403 1.5 .6 2.1 6.3 6.1 6.0

Metro 232 237 262 1.2 .5 1.7 6.6 6.5 6.3

Nonmetro 115 119 141 2.0 .7 2.9 5.9 5.5 5.6

Eastern U.S. 2,014 2,111 2,218 .9 1.2 .8 5.5 5.4 5.2

Eastern coal 225 232 249 1.0 .8 1.2 6.1 6.0 5.8

Minor 168 170 181 .7 .2 1.1 5.9 5.7 5.6

Major 56 62 68 1.9 2.6 1.5 6.7 6.8 6.4

Interior U.S 1,648 1,712 1,914 1.5 1.0 1.9 5.8 5.7 5.5

Interior coal 70 71 84 1.9 .5 2.9 6.6 6.3 6.3

Minor 66 67 77 1.6 .2 2.5 6.7 6.3 6.3

Major 4 5 7 5.7 3.6 6.7 5.6 5.7 6.7

Western U.S 793 836 1,002 2.4 1.3 3.1 5.9 5.7 5.4

Western coal 53 52 70 2.7 -.3 4.8 7.1 6.8 6.5

Minor 46 45 58 2,3 -.6 4.3 6.8 6.6 6.2

Major 7 7 12 5.2 1.0 8.0 10.5 8.6 8.0

Type of county:

Minor 280 282 316 1.2 .1 2.0 6.2 6.0 5.9

Major 67 74 87 2.6 2.5 2.6 6.9 6.9 6.6

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information

System, 1969, 1973, and 1979.
Appendix table 8—Finance, insurance, and real estate industries:

total wage and salary employment

Employment change and share of

ro

C3N

Area and

county type

Employment Compound annual

employment change

; Share

and s a

of total wage

lary employment

: 1969 : 1973 ; 1979 1969-

79

: 1969-

: 73

: 1973-

: 79 1969 : 1973 : 1979

—Thousands

4,178

3,653

525

n.»-

U.S. total

Metro

Nonmetro

: 3,598

: 3,187

: 411

5,021

4,342

679

3.4

3.1

5.1

3.8

3.5

6.3

3.1 4.6

2.9 5.3

4.4 2.3

5.0

5.7

2.7

5.2

5.9

3.0

U.S. coal, total

Metro

Nonmetro

: 202

156

: 46

232

175

57

286

211

76

3.5

3.1

5.0

3.5

3.0

5.3

3.5

3.1

4.8

3.7

4.4

2.4

4.0

4.8

2.7

4.3

5.0

3.0

Eastern U.S.

Eastern coal

Minor

Major

1,787

127

96

31

2,047

146

111

35

2,303

172

128

44

2.6

3.1

2.9

3.7

3.5

3.6

3.5

3.7

2.0

2.7

2.4

3.7

4.9

3.4

3.4

3.6

5.3

3.8

3.7

3.9

5.4

4.0

4.0

4.2

Interior U.S.

Interior coal :

Minor :

Major :

1,194

34

33

1

1,373

41

39

2

1,684

50

47

3

3.5

3.9

3.8

6.3

3.5

4.8

4.7

8.0

3.5

3.3

3.2

5.2

4.2

3.2

3.3

1.9

4.5

3.6

3.7

2.3

4.8

3.7

3.8

2.5

Western U.S. :

Western coal :

Minor :

Major :

617

41

40

1

758

45

43

2

1,034

65

61

3

5.3

4.6

4.4

9.8

5.3

2.3

2.1

7.6

5.3

6,1

5.9

11.3

4.6

5.5

5.9

2.0

5.1

5.9

6.4

2.1

5.5

6.0

6.6

2.4

Type of county: :

Minor :

Major :

169

33

193

39

236

50

3.4

4.1

3.5

4.1

3.4

4.2

3.7

3.4

4.1

3.6

4.4

3.8

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information

System, 1969, 1973, and 1979.
Appendix table 9—Total services industry: Employment change and share of total wage and salary

employment

Employment : Compound annual Share of total wage

Area and empl oyment change and salary employment

county type

: 1969 ; 1973 ; 1979 1969- :

79 :

1969-

73

: 1973-

: 79 [ 1969 ; 1973 ; 1979

i.—• ^* 1 ' l>« ^l^tt f* (^T^^«^^ ———•.^___ —1 inousancis 'ercent- j

U.S. total : 13,311 14,974 18,828 3.5 3.0 3.9 17.0 17.9 19.6

Metro : 10,693 12,040 15,304 3.6 3.0 4.1 17 6 18.7 21.0

Nonmetro : 2,618 2,934 3,524 3.0 2.9 3.1 14.9 15.2 15.8

U.S. coal, total 876 958 1,210 3.3 2.3 4.0 15.9 16.5 18,1

Metro 598 647 832 3.3 2.0 4.3 16.9 17.7 19.9

Nonmetro 278 312 378 3.2 2.9 3.3 14.2 14.5 15.0

Eastern U.S. 6,412 7,095 8,591 3.0 2.6 3.2 17.6 18.3 20.3

Eastern coal 586 632 769 2.8 1.9 3.3 15.9 16.2 17.9

Minor 449 479 584 2.7 1.6 3.3 15.7 16.0 18.0

Major : 137 153 185 3.1 2.8 3.3 16.4 16.8 17.6

Interior U.S. 4,523 5,112 6,377 3.5 3.1 3.8 15.9 16.9 18.4

Interior coal 169 188 233 3.2 2.6 3.7 16.0 16.5 17.5

Minor 157 175 218 3.3 2.7 3.7 16.0 16.6 17.7

Major 12 13 16 2.9 1.1 3.6 16.3 15.1 15.0

Western U.S. : 2,377 2,766 3,860 5.0 3.9 5,7 17.7 18.7 20.6

Western coal : 121 139 208 5.6 3.6 7.0 16.2 18.1 19.3

Minor 111 125 180 4.9 3.0 6.3 16.5 18.4 19.A

Major : 9 14 28 11.6 10.2 12.5 13.6 15.7 18.7

Type of county: :

Minor 718 780 981 3.2 2.1 3.9 15.9 16.5 18.2

Major : 158 179 229 3.7 3.1 4.2 16.2 16.5 17.5

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Information

System, 1969, 1973, and 1979.
Appendix table 10—Government services industry: Employment change and share of total wage and

salary employment

Employment : Compound annual Share of total wage

Area and

county type

; employment change and sal ary employment

; 1969 ; 1973 : 1979 1969-

79

: 1969-

: 73

: 1973-

: 79 1969 : 1973 ; 1979

— '—TTV» r^iicanrlo— T

U.S. total : 15,883

J-llUU-oclllLlb

16,873 18,144 1.3 1.5 1.2 20.3 20.1 18.9

Metro : 11,752 12,426 13,329 1.3 1.4 1.2 19.4 19.3 18.1

Nonmetro : 4,131 4,447 4,815 1.5 1.9 1.3 23.5 23.0 21.6

U.S. coal, total : 983 1,082 1,156 1.6 2.4 1.1 17.9 18.6 17.2

Metro : 547 598 637 1.5 2.3 1.0 15.4 16.4 15.2

Nonmetro 436 484 519 1.8 2.6 1.2 22.3 22.5 20,6

Eastern U.S. 7,214 7,673 8,197 1.3 1.6 - 1.1 19.8 19.8 19.3

Eastern coal 601 665 707 1.6 2.6 1.0 16.2 17.0 16.5

00 Minor 454 503 535 1.7 2.6 1.0 15v9 16.8 16.5

Major 147 162 172 1.6 2.4 1.0 17.5 17.7 16.3

Interior U.S. : 5,311 5,669 6,060 1.3 1.6 1.1 18.6 18.7 17.5

Interior coal : 220 238 255 1.5 2.1 1.1 20.7 21.0 19.1

Minor : 206 222 238 1.4 2.0 1.1 20.9 21.2 19.3

Major : 14 15 17 2.0 1.7 2.1 18.6 18.2 16.4

Western U.S. : 3,358 3,532 3,886 1.5 1.3 1.6 25.0 23.9 20.7

Western coal : 163 179 194 1.8 2.4 1.4 21.8 23.3 18.1

Minor : 145 158 169 1.6 2.2 1.2 21.4 23.2 18.2

Major : 18 21 25 3.4 3.9 3.0 26.5 24.3 17.0

Type of county: :

Minor : 805 884 942 1.6 2.4 1.2 17.8 18.7 17.5

Major : 179 198 214 1.8 2.6 1.3 18.2 18.3 16.4

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bui eau of E conomic Analysis, Regional Economi c Information

System, 1969, 1973, and 1979 •
Appendix table 11—Ü»S. coal-producing counties, by 1979 level of coal production

and region

Major coal-producing counties (produced 5 million tons or more per year):

Eastern coal region National rank Interior coal region National rank

Pike, KY 2 Muhlenberg, KY 9

Buchanan, VA 4 Warrick, IN 14

Martin, KY 6 Panola, TX 18

Indiana, PA 7 Perry, IL 19

Monongalia, WV 8 Ohio, KY 21

Boone, WV 10 Randolph, IL 27

Wise, VA 11 Hopkins, KY 28

Washington, PA 13 Titus, TX 30

Harlan, KY 16 Union, KY 42

McDowell, WV 17 Franklin, IL 47

Clearfleld, PA 20 Freestone, TX 53

Belmont, OH 22

Wyoming, WV 23

Kanawha, WV 25 Western coal region

Greene, PA 26 Campbell, WY 1

Breathitt, KY 29 Big Horn, MT 3

Logan, WV 31 Rosebud, MT 5

Cambria, PA 33 Navajo, AZ 12

Walker, AL 35 Carbon, WY 15

Jefferson, AL 36 San Juan, NM 24

Armstrong, PA 37 Sweetwater, WY 32

Somerset, PA 38 Routt, CO 34

Perry, KY 39 Emery, UT 46

Raleigh, WV 40 Mercer, ND 52

Floyd, KY 41 McKinley, NM 54

Marshall, WV 43 Lincoln, WY 55

Knott, KY 44

Harrison, OH 45

Muskingum, OH 48

Marion, WV 49

Clarion, PA 50

Nicholas, WV 51

Minor coal-producing counties, unranked (produced less than 5 million tons per year):

Eastern coal region

Bibb, AL

Blount, AL

Cherokee, AL

Cullman, AL

De Kalb, AL

Etowah, AL

Fayette, AL

Franklin, AL

Jackson, AL

Marion, AL

Marshall, AL

St. Clair, AL

Shelby, AL

Tuscaloosa, AL

Winston, AL

Walker, GA

Bell, KY

Boyd, KY

Carter, KY

Clay, KY

Elliott, KY

Greenup, KY

Jackson, KY

Johnson, KY

Knox, KY

Laurel, KY

Lawrence, KY

Lee, KY

Leslie, KY

Letcher, KY

McCreary, KY

Magoffin, KY

Menifee, KY

-continued

29
Appendix table 11—'U.S. coal-producing counties, by 1979 level of coal

production and region—continued

Eastern coal region

Morgan, KY

Owsley, KY

Pulaski, KY

Rockcastle, KY

Wayne, KY

Whitley, KY

Wolfe, KY

Allegany, MD

Garrett, MD

Butler, OH

Carroll, OH

Columbia, OH

Coshoctin,OH

Gallia, OH

Guernsey, OH

Hocking, OH

Holmes, OH

Jackson, OH

Jefferson, OH

Lawrence, OH

Mahoning, OH

Meigs, OH

Monroe, OH

Noble, OH

Perry, OH

Pike, OH

Stark, OH

Tuscarawas, OH

Vinton, OH

Washington, OH

Wayne, OH

Allegheny, PA

Beaver, PA

Bedford, PA

Bradford, PA

Carbon, PA

Centre, PA

Clinton, PA

Columbia, PA

Dauphin, PA

Elk, PA

Fayette, PA

Fulton, PA

Huntingdon, PA

Jefferson, FA

LaGkawanna, PA

Lawrence, PA

Luzerne, PA

Lycoming, PA

Mercer, PA

Northumberland, PA

Schuylkill, PA

Sullivan, PA

Tioga, PA

Venango, PA

Westmoreland, PA

Anderson, TN

Bledsoe, TN

Campbell, TN

Claiborne, TN

Cumberland, TN

Fentress, TN

Grundy, TN

Hamilton, TN

Marion, TN

Morgan, TN

Putnam, TN

Scott, TN

Sequatchle, TN

Van Buren, TX

Dickenson, VA

Lee, VA

Russell, VA

Scott, VA

Tazewell, VA

Barhour, WV

Braxton, WV

Brooke, WV

Fayette, WV

Gilmer, WV

Grant, WV

Greenbrier, WV

Harrison, WV

Lewis, WV

Lincoln, WV

Mercer, WV

Mineral, WV

Mingo, WV

Ohio, WV

Preston, WV

Randolph, WV

Taylor, WV

Tucker, WV

Upshur, WV

Wayne, WV

Webster, WV

Interior coal region

Franklin, AR

Johnson, AR

Sebastian, AR

Christian, IL

Clinton, IL

Douglas, IL

Fulton, IL

Gallatin, IL

Hamilton, IL

Jackson, IL

Jefferson, IL

Knox, IL

Macoupin, IL

Montgomery, IL

Peoria, IL

St. Clair, IL

Saline, IL

Vermilion, IL

Wabash, IL

Washington, IL

Williamson, IL

Clay, IN

Daviess, IN

Dubois, IN

Gibson, IN

Greene, IN

Knox, IN

Owen, IN

Parke, IN

Pike, IN

Spencer, IN

Sullivan, IN

VermiIlion, IN

Vigo, IN

Mahaska, lA

Marion, lA

Monroe, lA

Bourbon, KS

Crawford, KS

Labette, KS

Butler, KY

Caldwell, KY

Christian, KY

Daviess, KY

Grayson, KY

Henderson, KY

McLean, KY

Webster, KY

-continued

30
Appendix table 11—U.S. coal-producing counties, by 1979 level of coal

production and region—continued

Interior coal region

Audrain, MO

Barton, MO

Bates, MO

Chariton, MO

Henry, MO

Howard, MO

Macon, MO

Putnam, MO

Randolph, MO

Vernon, MO

Craig, OK

Haskell, OK

La timer, OK

Le Flore, OK

Mcintosh, OK

Muskogee, OK

Okmulgee, OK

Pittsburg, OK

Rogers, OK

Tulsa, OK

Wagoner, OK

Erath, TX

Harrison, TX

Hopkins, TX

Milam, TX

Webb, TX

Western coal region

Archuleta, CO

Delta, CO

Fremont, CO

Gunnison, CO

Huérfano, CO

Jackson, CO

LaPlata, CO

Las Animas, CO

Mesa, CO

Moffat, CO

Montrose, CO

Pitkin, CO

Rio Blanco, CO

Musselshell, MT

Powder River, MT

Richland, MT

Colfax, NM

Adams, ND

Bowman, ND

Burke, ND

McLean, ND

Oliver, ND

Stark, ND

Ward, ND

Carbon, UT

Sevier, UT

King, WA

Lewis, WA

Thurston, WA

Converse, WY

Sheridan, WY

Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration,

Energy Data Report, Coal Production—1979.

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